The Place of Storytelling Research in English Language Teaching: The State of the Art
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29408/veles.v7i2.12493Keywords:
Students, language, thinking, story, communicationAbstract
Storytelling techniques serve as dynamic tools for enhancing language skills, encompassing both receptive (listening, reading) and productive (speaking, writing) proficiencies. In contrast to their non-narrative counterparts, these techniques offer a more potent array of teaching methodologies. This study aims to elucidate the current landscape of research concerning the efficacy of storytelling techniques. Initially, the investigation delves into the cognitive processing of narratives. Stories engage language processing centers, invigorate the visual cortex, evoke emotive responses, and facilitate comprehension of intricate information. Subsequently, the study explores linguistic processing theory and embodied cognition theory. Through an exhaustive literature review, this research applies a rigorous evidence synthesis method to assess selected studies, culminating in the amalgamation of findings when comparability permits. The study unveils that storytelling techniques foster reading and listening comprehension, bolster speaking and writing skills, and kindle creativity and imagination. Moreover, enhancements span vocabulary, grammar, and syntax. Nonetheless, while generally efficacious, the uniformity of effectiveness across diverse learners remains a nuanced aspect.
References
AlHassan, L., & Wood, D. (2015). The effectiveness of focused instruction of formulaic sequences in augmenting L2 learners' academic writing skills: A quantitative research study. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 17, 51-62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2015.02.001
Al-Hoorie, A. H., & Hiver, P. (2020). The fundamental difference hypothesis: Expanding the conversation in language learning motivation. Sage Open, 10(3), 2158244020945702. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020945702
Amelia, L. C. H., & Abidin, M. J. Z. (2018). Young ESL learners' perception on the effects of using digital storytelling application in English language learning. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities. 26(1), 179 - 198,
Arjmandi, M., & Aladini, F. (2020). Improving EFL learners’ vocabulary learning through short story oriented strategy (SSOS). Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 10(7), 833-841. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1007.16
Biemiller, A. (2006). Vocabulary development and reading comprehension. In Handbook of reading research. Routledge.
Castano, E., Martingano, A. J., & Perconti, P. (2020). The effect of exposure to fiction on attributional complexity, egocentric bias and accuracy in social perception. PloS one, 15(5), e0233378. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0233378
Chang, A. C., & Millett, S. (2016). Developing L2 listening fluency through extended listening-focused activities in an extensive listening programme. RELC Journal, 47(3), 349-362. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688216631175
Chen, G. D., Fan, C. Y., Chang, C. K., Chang, Y. H., & Chen, Y. H. (2018). Promoting autonomy and ownership in students studying English using digital comic performance-based learning. Educational Technology Research and Development, 66, 955-978. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-018-9597-7
Chien, C. W. (2014). Non-native pre-service English teachers’ narratives about their pronunciation learning and implications for pronunciation training. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature, 3(4), 177-190. https://journals.aiac.org.au/index.php/IJALEL/article/view/1160
Cohen, J. (2020). The persuasive effects of immersive media entertainment: the role of transportation, presence, and parasocial interaction. Media Psychology, 23(2), 199–228.
Dornyei, Z. (2013). Communicative language teaching in the twenty-first century: The principled communicative approach. J. Arnold, & T. Murphy, Meaningful Action (Eds.), 161-171.
Frazier, L. (2016). Sentence processing: A tutorial review. Attention and performance XII, 559-586. Routledge
Gallese, V., & Lakoff, G. (2005). The brain’s concepts: The role of the sensory-motor system in conceptual knowledge. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 22(3–4), 455–479. https://doi.org/10.1080/02643290442000310
Ginting, D., Woods, R., Nuswantara, K., Sukaton, O.Z., & Jiuangga, V.V. (2021). Teacher’s voice: their experiences in emergency remote teaching amid Covid-19 pandemic. Mextesol Journal, 45(4), 1-15, https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1320896
Ginting, D., Fahmi, Utimadini, N.J., Barella, Y.. & Khatimah, H. (2022a). The Interplay of motivation and quality of instructions in the self-paced program: a MOOC for administration staffs, World Journal of English Language, 12(1), 198-210. https://doi.org/10.5430/wjel.v12n1p198
Ginting, D., Sulistyo, T., Ismiyani, N., Sembiring, M.J., Asfihana, R., Fahmi, A., Suarniti, G.A.M.R., Mulyani, Y.S. (2022b). English language teacher’s multimedia knowledge in teaching using technology, World Journal of English Language, 12(6), 184-203. https://doi.org/10.5430/wjel.v12n6p184
Ginting, D., Rahayu, P.S., Woods, R., Tantri, R.G., & Asfihana, R. (2022c). Portraying the Performance of Indonesian’s massive open online course facilitators. Sage Open, 12(3), 1-10, https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221116601
Ginting, D., Fahmi, F., Barella, Y., Hasbi, M., Kadnawi, K., Rojabi, A. R., & Zumrudiana, A. (2022d). Students’ perception on TPACK practices on online language classes in the midst of pandemic. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education (IJERE), 11(4), 1995-2009. http://doi.org/10.11591/ijere.v11i4.23014
Green, M. C., & Brock, T. C. (2000). The role of transportation in the persuasiveness of public narratives. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(5), 701–721. https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2000-00920-003.html
Green, M. C., Strange, J. J., & Brock, T. C. (Eds.). (2003). Narrative impact: Social and cognitive foundations. Taylor & Francis.
Green, M. C., Brock, T. C., & Kaufman, G. F. (2004). Understanding media enjoyment: The role of transportation into narrative worlds. Communication Theory, 14(4), 311–327. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2004.tb00317.x
Ghouali, K., & Benmoussat, S. (2019, June 6). Investigating the effect of social media on EFL students’ written production: Case of third-year EFL students at Tlemcen University, Algeria. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) May 2019 Chlef University International Conference Proceedings. Retrieved from https://ssrn.com/abstract=3400418 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3400418
Hagoort, P. (2019). The neurobiology of language beyond single-word processing. Science, 366(6461), 55-58. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aax0289
Hemmati, F., Gholamrezapour, Z., & Hessamy, G. (2015). The effect of teachers' storytelling and reading story aloud on the listening comprehension of Iranian EFL learners. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 5(7), 1482. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0507.22
Hui, A. N., Chow, B. W. Y., Chan, E. S., & Leung, M. T. (2020). Reading picture books with elements of positive psychology for enhancing the learning of English as a second language in young children. Frontiers in psychology, 10, 2899. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02899
Hwang, W. Y., Shadiev, R., Hsu, J. L., Huang, Y. M., Hsu, G. L., & Lin, Y. C. (2016). Effects of storytelling to facilitate EFL speaking using Web-based multimedia system. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 29(2), 215-241. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2014.927367
Kanwisher, N. (2010). Functional specificity in the human brain: A window into the functional architecture of the mind. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107(25), 11163–11170. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1005062107
Khodabandeh, F. (2018). The impact of storytelling techniques through virtual instruction on English students’speaking ability. Teaching English with Technology, 18(1), 24-36.
Khurana, D., Koli, A., Khatter, K., & Singh, S. (2023). Natural language processing: State of the art, current trends and challenges. Multimedia tools and applications, 82(3), 3713-3744. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-022-13428-4
Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1999). Philosophy in the flesh: The embodied mind and its challenge to western thought. Basic books.
Lee, S. M. (2019). Her Story or their own stories? Digital game-based learning, student creativity, and creative writing. ReCALL, 31(3), 238-254. doi:10.1017/S0958344019000028
Lindgren, J. (2018). Developing narrative competence: Swedish, Swedish-German and Swedish-Turkish Children Aged 4–6 (Doctoral dissertation, Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis).
https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn%3Anbn%3Ase%3Auu%3Adiva-347102
Liu, M., Kang, H., Gao, Y., & Hou, H. (2017). Exploring the impact of digital storytelling on chinese college students’ creativity. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 55(8), 1049–1069.
Liu, J. (2016). Adaptation of authentic materials in English listening comprehension classes. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 6(9), 1774. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0609.08
Livingstone, M., & Hubel, D. (1988). Depth : Anatomy, physiology, and perception. Science, 240(4853), 740-749. https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.3283936
Lyons, R., & Roulstone, S. (2018). Well-being and resilience in children with speech and language disorders. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 61(2), 324-344. https://doi.org/10.1044/2017_JSLHR-L-16-0391
Lucarevschi, C. R. (2016). The role of storytelling on language learning: A literature review. Working Papers of the Linguistics Circle, 26(1), 24-44. https://journals.uvic.ca/index.php/WPLC/article/view/15309
MacWhinney, B., Taraban, R., McDonald, J., & Alcock, K. J. (2011). From storytelling to written language: The development of English. Language Learning, 61(3), 696-733.
Masrai, A. (2020). Can L2 phonological vocabulary knowledge and listening comprehension be developed through extensive movie viewing? The case of Arab EFL learners. International Journal of Listening, 34(1), 54-69. https://doi.org/10.1080/10904018.2019.1582346
Mol, S. E., & Bus, A. G. (2011). To read or not to read: A meta-analysis of print exposure from infancy to early adulthood. Psychological Bulletin, 137(2), 267–296. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021890
Nielsen, M., & Godhe, A.-L. (2020). Teaching specific writing skills can have a positive impact on students’ writing ability and confidence. Journal of Writing Research, 12(3), 571–592.
Nikolajeva, M., & Scott, C. (2011). How picturebooks work. Routledge.
Ohashi, Y., (2015). Communicative language teaching for young learners of English: A critical perspective. Fukuoka Jo Gakuin University Bulletin Faculty of International Career Development, 1, 17–30. Retrieved from http://repository.fukujo.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/11470/93/1/218939422015017030.pdf
Peacock, M. (1997). The effect of authentic materials on the motivation of EFL learners. ELT Journal, 51(2), 144–156. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/51.2.144
Razmi, M., Pourali, S., & Nozad, S. (2014). Digital storytelling in EFL classroom (oral presentation of the story): A pathway to improve oral production. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 98, 1541-1544.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.03.576
Schank, R. C., & Abelson, R. P. (2014). Knowledge and memory: The real story (1st ed.). Psychology Press. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315806594
Slater, M. D. (2014). Narrative transportation. In J. P. Dillard & L. Shen (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Persuasion: Developments in Theory and Practice (2nd ed.). SAGE.
Van Krieken, K., Hoeken, H., & Sanders, J. (2015). From reader to mediated witness: The engaging effects of journalistic crime narratives. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 92(3), 580-596. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077699015586546
Van Laere, K., & Vandenbroeck, M. (2018). The (in) convenience of care in preschool education: examining staff views on educare. Early Years, 38(1), 4-18. https://doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2016.1252727
Wang, Y. L., & Wu, W. C. V. (2017). the effectiveness of graded extensive listening on the listening comprehension skills of efl learners. TESOL Quarterly, 51(1), 56–85.
Xie, Z., Wang, W., Chu, X., Qiu, Q., Yuan, F., Huang, J., & Chen, M. (2021). Contributions of demographics, language learning experience, and cognitive control to Chinese reading comprehension. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 770579. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.770579
Yang, Y. T. C., & Wu, W. C. I. (2012). Digital storytelling for enhancing student academic achievement, critical thinking, and learning motivation: A year-long experimental study. Computers & education, 59(2), 339-352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2011.12.012
Ye, W., Ren, W., & Zheng, S. (2021). The construct of the story continuation writing task: Insights from the China’s standards of English language ability. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, 44(3), 382-398.
Yeh, E., & Mitric, S. (2019). Voices to be heard: Using social media for digital storytelling to foster language learners' engagement. Tesl-Ej, 24(2).1-15. http://www.tesl-ej.org/pdf/ej90/int.pdf
Yoon, T. (2013). Are you digitized? Ways to provide motivation for ELLs using digital storytelling. International Journal of Research Studies in Educational Technology, 2(1), 1-10. https://www.learntechlib.org/p/49787/
Zacks, J. M., & Tversky, B. (2001). Event structure in perception and conception. Psychological Bulletin, 127(1), 3–21. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.127.1.3
Zeki, S. (1993). A vision of the brain. Oxford University Press.
Downloads
Additional Files
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with the VELES Journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
VELES Journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
